Inmate dies at Oregon State Penitentiary

A 68-year-old inmate was found dead Wednesday morning in his cell at the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem.

Juan Rivas-Valles, serving a life sentence for killing his girlfriend and another man, was unresponsive when an officer discovered him during a routine check. Officials do not suspect foul play, said Audrey McPherson, office manager of the Oregon State Penitentiary.

Juan Rivas-VallesOregon Department of Corrections

Rivas-Valles lived in a single cell with no roommate.

The medical examiner will perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death. Oregon State Police are investigating, which is standard with all inmate deaths.

Rivas-Valles pleaded guilty to murder and aggravated murder in 1990. He had found his girlfriend and another man together in a room at a motel on East Burnside Street. Rivas-Valles and his girlfriend were from Fort Hall, Idaho.